Can cops dump your booze?

[doofaloofa]

This makes cops no different from mob enforcers, except for the dorky uniforms.

There's nothing dorky about this uniform!

[Vieux Normand]

Did the bad policeman take your skateboard too?

Minority Report.

I didn't let the years I spent on campus brainwash me...

Makes two of us: my campus years were spent in the athletics department. Not much lefty ideology there, I'm afraid.

obviously something soaked here.

The guy you're thinking of wants to borrow your gloves.

EDIT: Try to get over this idea that everyone who has no use for cops is some sort of skinny-ass left-wing undergradical. Contempt for cops is somewhat more widespread, among working taxpayers, than that.

[slamdunc]

Try to get over this idea that everyone who has no use for cops is some sort of skinny-ass left-wing undergradical. Contempt for cops is somewhat more widespread, among working taxpayers, than that.

I feel your pain; I've been a working taxpayer myself since 1980. I have contempt for government waste and fraud as well as the small percentage (estimated 3%) of cops who are hypocrites and ones who are actually corrupt. 97% of us are honest, hard-working citizens, not abusers of authority and violators of civil rights.

BTW, I never called you skinny LOL.

[slamdunc]

I think the problem for cops is no one notices if you just go about your duty, protecting and serving, but every one remembers the dick head police man that <insert misscarraige of justice> all up in your shit

Very True. The media sensationalizes the misdeeds of all the rogues; there is no need to do stories on everyday cops just doing what they're supposed to do. It doesn't sell and nobody really cares.

I think the profesion does attract young men and women with a huge chip on thier shoulders, unfotunately, who are the people that you least want with a badge and a gun/truncheon

Also true; it can and does attract immature people who didn't get enough hugs as a child. The background investigation, psychological and polygraph usually weed them out (about 97% of the time). Most of the time, it draws people who want to serve and to give back; occasionally, it pulls in a few who want to take.

I left an industrial career (Brown & Root--Halliburton) and took a $30,000 annual pay cut to do what I love doing. Conversely, I work with a guy who couldn't make it as a stock clerk at Wal-Mart; a cop job was a huge pay increase for him. He brings nothing to the table in the way of people skills; since he is locked in with seniority and all, he is there for the duration.

[Vieux Normand]

Very True. The media sensationalizes the misdeeds of all the rogues; there is no need to do stories on everyday cops just doing what they're supposed to do. It doesn't sell and nobody really cares.

Okay, just understand that cops aren't being somehow "singled-out" by media for this treatment. If I drive home without incident, it won't make any headlines. If I'm involved in a fiery multi-vehicle crash, it will get media attention because--as pointed out--that's the sort of thing that sells copy. Same goes for anyone else, regardless of job description.

Now, just so my opinion of police is not misunderstood ("skateboards" 'n' whatnot), here is a perspective you may or may not have considered:

You've had a fucking shitty ten-plus-hour shift in which you had to break up a number of fights in some douche-magnet club (with no duty-belts full of toys to help, and backup nowhere near as fast as it should be). You've had to write up a number of incident reports listing the number of punches you've eaten, bottles swung at you, and any other stupidity you've had to deal with without losing your temper, regardless of the provocation.

It's 0400 and you're finally heading home to your family. The club district, being replete with venues that all close at the same time, is full of morons calling each other out, throwing down, whatever. To avoid all this merriment (also, you're known in the district) you decide to walk home via a relatively-quiet side street.

You're about halfway home when--just like the week/night before--a cruiser pulls up beside you. Why the officers in it aren't on the district's main drag, where there's obviously actual shit for LEOs to deal with, you don't know. You're asked to wait while your ID is checked. While this is going on, the officers--plainly nervous about something (but it can't be anything you did, since you've been totally cordial and co-operative)--have called for backup. Soon there are two, then three, then up to six cruisers parked next to you while the young guns who first stopped you (there's no way they could even have been born when you started breaking up fights to pay your tuition, decades before) dig and dig and dig for anything at all. (Full disclosure: I have no criminal record, have never been arrested or charged and have not so much as a parking ticket to my name).

Their apparent nervousness turns to disappointment, then seeming resentment, as they find the person they stopped had no reason to whatsoever to be stopped (other than the obvious fact that they didn't like the way he looked). Unable to find anything after a good half-hour of database-fu, they realise they must either charge you with something or allow you to continue your homeward journey.

That is a description of my walks home about 50% of the nights I work. More than one city. It's been this way for as long as I've worked the stupid fucking jobs I've had.

See? No lib-left whining, no skateboard.

Only the observation that people might view police with a less jaundiced eye if the latter would just go after criminals and leave ordinary people the fuck alone. If you can't fight actual crime and must rely on annoying regular folk to justify the tax dollars spent on training and equipping you, get another fucking job. This is not only a matter concocted by the media. It's a result of personal experience, and not just mine: it's one shared by all too many ordinary non-criminals.

EDIT: Apologies for the wall of text.

[Middlefinger]

One of my biggest problems with cops is the lack of accountability. They police themselves and have a habit of excusing behaviors from fellow officers that they would arrest a civilian for doing.

The woman in this video has cerebral palsy. Her only crime was having difficulty walking. The pig who did that was "punished" with 1 days paid vacation.

[slamdunc]

Their apparent nervousness turns to disappointment, then seeming resentment, as they find the person they stopped had no reason to whatsoever to be stopped (other than the obvious fact that they didn't like the way he looked). Unable to find anything after a good half-hour of database-fu, they realise they must either charge you with something or allow you to continue your homeward journey.

That is a description of my walks home about 50% of the nights I work. More than one city. It's been this way for as long as I've worked the stupid fucking jobs I've had.

If these officers could not articulate their suspicions or reason for contact, they should not have stopped you, period! I would never attempt to defend the actions of officers who violate The Constitution. Courts have held that the standard for police is reasonableness. I don't have to be right, I only have to be reasonable. If I am roving around at 04:00, have suspicions about your behavior and try to stop you, I am going to tell you why I stopped you and thank you for your time when our encounter is over.

Only the observation that people might view police with a less jaundiced eye if the latter would just go after criminals and leave ordinary people the fuck alone. If you can't fight actual crime and must rely on annoying regular folk to justify the tax dollars spent on training and equipping you, get another fucking job. This is not only a matter concocted by the media. It's a result of personal experience, and not just mine: it's one shared by all too many ordinary non-criminals.

Some cops don't understand the law (what THEY can and cannot do). I won't try to explain this or to justify it. Agencies and supervisors have to train this mentality out of their people or get rid of them.

One of my biggest problems with cops is the lack of accountability. They police themselves and have a habit of excusing behaviors from fellow officers that they would arrest a civilian for doing.

Where I come from, there is a great deal of accountability. In car video clears officers of wrongdoing in about 90% of complaints for use of force and other violations of citizen rights.

I will defend a fellow officer to the end, if he is righteous. I don't know the exact scenario on the video you posted, but if it is as it appears, those guys are wrong and should be punished. Wrong is wrong whether or not it is a cop or a plumber.

[tgace]

Re: Can cops dump your booze?

Using the term "cops are...." is about as fair as saying "blacks are..." don't pigeonhole me for what some tools in cities on the other side of the country are doing .

[Vieux Normand]

If these officers could not articulate their suspicions or reason for contact, they should not have stopped you, period!

As you are well aware, they can come up with any "reason". The one I hear most often is the classic "we're on the lookout for someone who matches your description".

The most surreal occurrence I've had was after working a couple of clubs on Canada's west coast. After a good forty-minute 4 AM database-fu search regarding someone "who looked like me"--and having finally conceded that I wasn't the "person who resembles me" they were supposedly looking for--one of the cops actually handed me a fucking business card and said "By the way, if you're interested, we're recruiting".

Seriously.

After spending a sizable chunk of time apparently doing their utmost to change a normal person into a confirmed cop-hater, they then tell that same individual--before finally and magnanimously allowing him to continue on his journey homeward--that they're "recruiting".

Priceless.

In any case, you're doubtless correct in that I'm overgeneralizing with regards to an entire profession. It's a sad commentary on humanity: we all have our bad habits.

[slamdunc]

As you are well aware, they can come up with any "reason". The one I hear most often is the classic "we're on the lookout for someone who matches your description".

I'm not going to fool myself into believing this doesn't happen. If I pulled that kind of shit and caught a complaint, I'd better have documentation (radio-calls, documented citizen report, etc.) to substantiate my claim. We can go fishing to some degree, but out and out fucking with people is a really bad idea.

I had a bad experience with a waitress at Pizza Hut one time; I just didn't visit that place until I found out she had quit and moved away. Dealing with law enforcement isn't like a place where I can take my business elsewhere. I choose to treat people as I would like to be treated. There are jerks in every profession, trade and job classification though.

[Vieux Normand]

I had a bad experience with a waitress at Pizza Hut one time; I just didn't visit that place until I found out she had quit and moved away. Dealing with law enforcement isn't like a place where I can take my business elsewhere. I choose to treat people as I would like to be treated. There are jerks in every profession, trade and job classification though.

[Nefron]

The cops in my home town in Bosnia are some of the most annoying people ever. I don't know exactly whats the deal, they apparently have some kind of quota to fill.

Anyway, they are stopping young people left and right, and asking for ID. You go about your business, and then a cop jumps out of bushes and IDs you. They write your information in their little cop notebook, and off you go.

Most of them are polite about it to the best of their abilities, but I experienced a few cases of obnoxious morons that filled me with facekick rage. My interaction with a certain female cop is the closest I got to committing assault.

The traffic cops are a story in itself. Some are gotten so arrogant, that they won't even hide that they are looking for a bribe. All of my encounters with them ended in the best possible way. For some reason, they left me off the hook multiple times, when I was ridiculously speeding.

I don't see this shit happening in other towns.

[W. Rabbit]

The cops in my home town in Bosnia are some of the most annoying people ever...

Quote-worthy...

[DimmedSum]

Sounds like yet another reason to not move to Canada..

Seriously though, it is important for you to know your rights as a citizen wherever you live. One of my most memorable encounters involved being stopped while riding my bike for not having a light on the back (I had one on the front). There were two cops who got out and talked to me, one did all the talking while the other one observed. The cop in question was extremely polite during the first part of our encounter as he ran through the typical questions.. Do you have any weapons or illegal drugs on you? No sir. Do you mind if I check? Yes sir, I do. At this point he tried to say I threw something out as they got behind me. No sir, I did not. His attitude turned sour as he wrote me a warning and told me "he knew what I was up to" and they would "get me eventually" and he would give me a ticket if he saw me riding home even that night. Bottom line.. he had no legal right to search me, I was aware of this, exercised my right as a citizen, and that pissed him off.